Pay Ruling For Blacks May Help Women

July 2, 1986|By United Press International

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court, in a decision that could help women battling pay bias, ruled Tuesday the Civil Rights Act can be used to correct salary discrimination between blacks and whites that began before the law took effect.

The decision, which sends a North Carolina case back to lower courts for further proceedings, could mean some black state employees can collect years of back pay because they were paid less than whites with similar jobs.

Women's groups closely followed the case because of its parallels to the debate over ''comparable worth,'' the idea that women historically -- and unfairly -- have been paid less than men. Supporters of pay equity argue that so-called women's jobs have got lower pay though the work is of comparable value to society as higher-paying ''men's work.''

The court, in an unsigned opinion, ruled in cases brought by the government and a group of employees of the North Carolina Agricultural Extension Service against the state.

The justices concluded a federal appeals court erred when it held that Title 7 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 -- which forbids discrimination in employment because of race, sex, religion, color or national origin -- did not apply to pay differences between black and white workers that began before the law was extended, in 1972, to cover public employers.

Julius Chambers, of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, who worked on the case, said the ruling was extremely important because the court, in rejecting standards set by the appeals court, made it easier to prove discrimination and because the court recognized the issue of continuing pay disparities.

The issue of pay disparity, he noted, is ''of interest to minorities and women, who have historically been paid less than men,'' and said the ruling ''most certainly will open up ways to challenge present day salary disparities.''

In other action, the court:

-- Ruled 5 to 4 that people facing commitment to prison psychiatric wards as ''sexually dangerous'' are not entitled to the self-incrimination protections enjoyed by accused criminals.

-- On a 6 to 3 vote, said civil rights laws expressly give the government immunity from paying interest on an award of attorney fees in race discrimination cases against the government.

-- Ruled 6 to 3 that school officials and children in 23 Mississippi counties may sue the state over a school funding formula that treats those counties differently from the rest of the state. The dispute returns to a lower court, which now must determine if the funding disparities are the result of ''a legitimate state interest.''